Does anyone know why Mr. Halper sold off his collection? People have given him priceless memorabilia, then he decideds to sell it off for a few dollars? I always go by the old adage, a collector never sells just trades and gives some away to lucky friends. If my friends knew i was gonna liquidate for a profit, i would have a few less items in my collection. Jeff
I do not hold judgment on how someone accumulates and dispences the items in his collection (assuming the methods are legal and honest), but it should be noted that trading, also known as bartering, is form of buying/selling. Trading merely omits the middleman named currency.
It was my understanding that many sport figures came to see his collection and many wanted to share and be a part of his Hall Of Fame. I dont believe the luminaries ever thought this collection was gonna make his "heirs" wealthier. I personally would be upset to see my gifts be sold. I have always seen the light different than most. Jeff
I will correct or clarity my earlier statement by saying that Halper bought with dollars much of his collection. Gifts and old fashioned trading were also part of the accumulating.
Jeff, I add that if George Brett or Robert DeNiro or whomever came to my house and gave me a birthday present in the form of a significant personal item, the item wouldn't be for sale. So I understand where you are coming from.
Thank God for Barry Halper. Because of this man's passion for all-things baseball, tens of thousands of rare baseball relics were "rescued" from people who didn't know what they had. I don't feel badly for the people who gave Barry things for his collection. Barry would never have sold it if it weren't for real health concerns in the late 90s. I remember him telling me after his first stroke, that if he died suddenly, his wife would never know where everything he had was. It wasn't just the three large rooms in his basement that were filled with his fantastic finds. He also had 3 warehouses filled with "stuff."
Barry was always there to help collectors and the collecting community. No derision should come this great man's way.
Barry sold off his collection because of health issues. No need to jump on him for that. He is still alive but in an newspaper article discussing memorabilia and the Halper collection, they said that he was 'too ill' to be interviewed.
I don't have a problem with Barry selling off his collection. I do sell on occasion and must say that I have two piles of memorabilia, the stuff for sale and my personal collection. Will I ever sell items from my personal collection (which includes many Halper items)? I don't see myself now but perhaps in the future. After all, every great collector never thinks about selling their collection and then one day, there it is in a catalog.
Seth, you have a collection I truly envy, do you ever see a time when your items make the glossed pages of a popular auction catalog?
that's really nice of you to say, DJ--thanks. so far, i haven't contemplated selling anything. but, i do buy less "stuff" these days. it's easy to be overwhelmed by all the auctions and there's that feeling that if you don't buy something, that you're not moving forward with your collection. but, this is not true. there is always another auction just around the bend. Let the great pieces, whether they be expensive or not, come to you. and they will, like a fat pitch in baseball. to just write checks for big money stuff, i guess is one form of collecting. i'd rather find a piece that i can see the poetry in, the deeper meaning. i also love the way a certain piece can transport you to a moment, a time--just like a time machine. i have a 1929 train menu signed by the entire philadelphia A's team, their wives, management--66 people all riding the train to chocago for the world series vs. the cubs. Holding it, you're on that train.
again, thanks for the compliment. anyone who wants to see some of things in my collection head over to seth.com and click "collection". it's broken up into 5 sections: historic baseballs, letters and documents, memorabilia, theme balls and photographs.
